Ex-Titan pitcher coming back from injury, tragedy

Feb. 21, 2013

Updated June 11, 2014 12:08 a.m.

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Chad Cordero smiles after getting a compliment on his hat from Angels' minor league roving pitching coordinator Jim Gott before a workout session at the Angels' minor league facility near Tempe Diablo Stadium Wednesday. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cal State Fullerton alum Chad Cordero pitches during a workout session at the Angels' minor league facility near Tempe Diablo Stadium on Wednesday. Cordero signed a minor-league contract with the Angels – his fourth such contract in as many years. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cal State Fullerton alum Chad Cordero warms up during workouts at the Angels' minor league facility near Tempe Diablo Stadium on Wednesday. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cal State Fullerton alum Chad Cordero pitches during a workout at the Angels' minor league facility near Tempe Diablo Stadium on Wednesday. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cal State Fullerton alum Chad Cordero gets a fist bump from Matt Wise, pitching coach of the Arizona League Angels and a fellow Titan. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cal State Fullerton alum Chad Cordero has been out of baseball for a few years and is trying to make a comeback with the Angels. KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Chad Cordero smiles after getting a compliment on his hat from Angels' minor league roving pitching coordinator Jim Gott before a workout session at the Angels' minor league facility near Tempe Diablo Stadium Wednesday.KEVIN SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

TEMPE, Ariz. – A short walk from Tempe Diablo Stadium, at the Angels' minor league complex, there is a clubhouse full of 20- and 21-year-old kids with wide eyes, the blank slate of big league potential in front of them.

There among them is Chad Cordero.

Cordero is 30, too old to be in this room but too young to be retired. While Cordero's minor league teammates have barely begun to pen their stories, he is trying to add yet another chapter to a book that already includes more than its share of highs – the former Cal State Fullerton standout recorded 128 saves and made an All-Star team with the Washington Nationals – and one unthinkable low.

In December 2010, Cordero's 11-week old daughter, Tehya, died of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

"She fell asleep," Cordero said, "and didn't wake up."

That mind-numbing tragedy was more than enough to stall Cordero's last comeback attempt. As he sat in a dingy chair in an equipment room in the Angels' minor league complex Wednesday, Cordero had the perspective to realize he was doomed to fail when he tried to pitch months after Tehya's death.

"After my daughter passed away, I tried to get back too quick," he said. "I just wasn't ready for it. Getting released was a blessing, the best thing that could have happened to me. I got to spend time with my wife and oldest daughter, and we found out my wife was pregnant."

Cordero is ready again for baseball. He decided about a year ago – shortly after son Cooper was born, to try another comeback. After months of working out on both sides of the globe – and exactly two days of throwing to hitters – Cordero earned a minor league deal from the Angels.

"I don't think I realized how much I missed it," Cordero said. "I've been gone for almost two years, but coming back it's like I never left. Everything came back to me right away. I'm just grateful for this opportunity."

The Angels signed Cordero – based on a cell phone video and the back of his baseball card – because there was really no reason not to. They were guaranteeing him nothing more than a uniform and a locker in a minor league clubhouse. And the potential reward was an accomplished big league reliever with off-the-charts character.

"Good things happen to good people, and every report on Chad is that he's a great person," General Manager Jerry Dipoto said. "I really hope it ends in a fairy-tale type of way for him."

Cordero's unlikely fairy tale began with him reaching the majors just weeks after the Montreal Expos took him out of Fullerton with the 20th overall pick in the 2003 draft. He made the opening-day roster in 2004 and became the Expos' closer.

Over his first four full seasons in the majors, with the relocated Nationals, Cordero posted a 2.83 ERA and he made the All-Star team in 2005, when he led the league with 47 saves.

All before his 26th birthday.

In 2008, though, Cordero blew out his shoulder in April. He had surgery in July and spent nearly two years trying to get back to the majors. He made it back with Seattle in the middle of 2010. By the end of that season, he felt he'd gotten his career back.

Until Dec. 4, 2010.

Tehya and her older sister, Riley, who was 18 months old, were spending the night with Cordero's parents. Shortly after midnight, Cordero's mother, Patti, went into the bedroom to check on Tehya, and she screamed when she realized the baby was not breathing.

To this day, Cordero said doctors have not been able to explain what happened to Tehya. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, SIDS is the leading cause of death among infants under 12 months old. SIDS strikes one of every 2,000 infants in the U.S.

With statistics like those swirling in his head, Cordero was not prepared to pitch again, even though he signed a minor league deal with the Blue Jays for 2011.

"Mentally I wasn't into it, and it took a toll on my body," Cordero said. "After she passed away, I stopped all baseball activity. Stopped throwing. Stopped running. I just wasn't into it."

Being alone in the minors was not a recipe for healing for Cordero. He needed to be home with his wife, Jamie – a former Fullerton gymnast – and Riley. And shortly after he returned, the couple learned they were expecting another baby.

For the rest of the year, Cordero was just a husband and dad, preparing for the arrival of Cooper, born in January 2012. That was around the time that Cordero started to have thoughts of making another comeback.

"I missed the game," he said. "I missed being around the atmosphere in the clubhouse, the coaching staff. I missed throwing the baseball every day and having that good time with my teammates."

Cordero helped former Fullerton teammate David Bacani Jr. coach the baseball team at Santa Margarita High in the spring. Then in the summer he and his family took a three-month trip around the country, visiting friends and seeing sights from Florida to Mount Rushmore.

All along, Cordero was working out. In the fall, he began throwing bullpen sessions. In November, he spent a month in Japan training with former Nationals strength and conditioning coach Kazuhito Tomooka. Cordero said he worked out from 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m., five days a week.

Cordero said he lost 35 pounds. Despite all the work, he was frustrated that he could only get his velocity up to about 85 mph.

"I knew I had more in there," he said. "I knew if I could get in a game or scrimmage, with the adrenaline, my velocity would jump up."

So Cordero called Fullerton coach Rick Vanderhook and he asked if he could come throw to some Titans hitters. On Feb. 2, he pitched in a Fullerton scrimmage, the first time he'd faced a hitter in 21 months. His velocity jumped to 88-90 mph, Cordero said. He pitched in the Fullerton alumni game on Feb. 9, and agent Larry Reynolds came to watch.

Cordero pitched two scoreless innings, and Reynolds recorded it all on his cell phone. A Fullerton radar gun clocked Cordero at 92 mph.

"He didn't throw much harder than that in his top form," Reynolds said. "It wasn't just the velocity. It was the command. He looked great. I called Jerry Dipoto as I was driving out of the parking lot."

Within a few days, Reynolds was in Dipoto's office in Tempe showing him the video on his phone. That, Cordero's track record and the fact he still wouldn't be 31 until March, were enough to convince Dipoto.

"At the end of the day, this is a no-risk proposition for the Angels and for Chad," Dipoto said. "Let's bring him in and give him an opportunity."

Cordero, who had assumed he might have to throw again for scouts or even pitch in an independent league, said his "jaw dropped" when he heard the news. A day later, he was in Tempe pulling on a uniform in the Angels minor league clubhouse, with no complaints.

"I knew if I was going to make a comeback I'd have to start at the lowest level and work my way back up," Cordero said. "It's something new, coming straight to minor league camp. But it's still baseball. I'm just like one of the regular minor leaguers who work his way up. I'm willing to do whatever it takes."

Cordero has thrown three times since, and he has already made an impression. Dipoto noticed the 35-pound weight loss, saying Cordero is in better shape than he ever was during his prime. ("He went from looking like a nose tackle to a distance runner.") Dipoto noticed the smile on his face. And he noticed the pitches pounding the bottom of the strike zone, from side to side.

"His stuff looks awfully similar to when he was at the top of his game," Dipoto said. "When he was in his prime he was not an overpowering guy. He was a guy who operated at 88-92, an average fastball and average command an outstanding changeup, and very deceptive. I don't know why he wouldn't be able to find that again, if he's healthy, and he appears to be."

Cordero is likely to get a shot to pitch in some big league exhibition games this spring, but after that he'll probably start somewhere in the minors, anywhere from Single-A to Triple-A.

"I'm really excited to see what happens," Dipoto said. "He's overcome a setback that would throw a lot of people for a loop. He's come through it and pulled himself off the mat."

NOTES

Rain pelted the Phoenix area for much of the morning, leaving the Angels to limit their workouts to the indoor facilities. Pitchers were able to throw inside and the hitters took indoor batting practice, but the baserunning, defense and fundamental schedule was pushed back a day. ... Left-hander Sean Burnett is "better," Manager Mike Scioscia said, but they will remain cautious about getting him back on the mound because it's so early in spring training. "We expect to see him hopefully make improvement over the next week and get evaluated. We don't have a timetable but the prognosis is good for him to get this inflammation behind him." Burnett has been shut down since Monday because of stiffness in his lower back.

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